Burnaby teachers will join their counterparts across the province Monday for a full-scale teacher's strike.
Eighty-seven per cent of B.C. teachers voted yes to escalate the current job action. Of 32,209 ballots cast, 27,946 voted yes. The strike will last three days.
"Teachers are determined and united in their opposition to Bill 22 and to the bullying tactics of a provincial government that has deliberately underfunded public education for a decade," said Susan Lambert, president of the B.C. Teachers' Federation.
The unions says that Bill 22, tabled yesterday in the legislature, seeks to impose a net-zero contract, to restrict the ability to negotiate improved learning conditions, and to eliminate fundamental civil and labour rights for teachers.
"The results of our province-wide vote are strong evidence of the unity and determination of BCTF members in rejecting this government's provocative and damaging legislation," said Lambert who worked in Burnaby as a teacher-librarian and resource room teacher for students with special needs.
The Labour Relations Board is allowing the union to stage a full walkout one-day-per-week, following the initial 3-day strike. The Liberal Government's back-to-work legislation will make any strike by teachers illegal.
"Most people are characterizing the bill as a 'measured, thoughtful, balanced and constructive' approach to a dispute that has been going on for almost a year with little chance of a resolution," Education Minister George Abbott said in a press release. "If you look at the history of the relationship between the teachers' union and the government in this province, you'll soon realize that in almost 20 years of provincewide bargaining the BCTF has only successfully concluded one negotiated agreement. You will also realize that Bill 22 is a measured and appropriate response to the current situation.
"I am disappointed by the initial comments coming from the teachers' union. In the most frustrating example - the union has been asking for mediation. Now, they are rejecting the idea simply because the mediator is required to strike a genuine balance in the discussions by looking at what both parties want so we can put the needs of students first."
